Amethyst's Precious
by StevenFriday
Summary: This is an AU dream I had where Amethyst, after completing a mission, doesn't want to bubble an artifact she captured. She soon begins to act distant and even hostile towards her fellow Gems. The Gems wonder if she can be saved. This short, two-part story also features Rose before Steven was born.
1. Chapter 1

**Part 1: Sour Grape**

"Alright, Amethyst," Garnet says, looking at the hole, "you're the only one who can fit in there. Do your thing." Amethyst goes down on her knees and crawls on the blue floor of the ice mountain. She squeezes through the Amethyst-sized hole that sits between her and the Gems' goal. They're on a mission to look for an artifact that is said to bring inanimate objects to life. It's gotten out of control. Garnet did most of the work destroying the artifact's guardians, but destroying the wall into the artifact's sanctuary has proven to be difficult. It's virtually indestructible, save for that Amethyst-sized hole. Not even Garnet can break through it with her gauntlets.

Behind the wall where she left Garnet and Pearl, there are glimmering white bridges leading to the artifact. The artifact is a small, brown figurine that resembles a woman wearing a long robe the folds over at the edges. She almost looks like Rose, except for the fact that the gem is on the back and the hair is straight and short. The bridges are thin. Amethyst stands up. She finds that the width of her foot can't even fit properly on them. Carefully, hoping she doesn't fall in the bottomless black pit below her, she shimmies across.

"Wh-Whoa!" She shouts, getting off-balance. She falls backwards, but catches herself on the ledge. She laughs nervously, looking down. It's not like she hasn't done things like this before, but it's always so scary. Especially since she's clumsy. Wait…she can shape-shift. Why didn't she think of this before?

Amethyst releases her grip from the bridge. She falls.

A few seconds later, she flies up to the statue as a small bird. Her wings are beating fast, chest puffing rapidly, it's tiring—or she's just being lazy. Amethyst's talons land on the pedestal supporting the artifact. The click of her talons echoes throughout the room and down the bottomless pit. She stares at the artifact for a long time. It's giving her a queer feeling, somewhat uncomfortable. Up close, the artifact looks almost new, save for the few cracks here or there around the body. Amethyst hesitantly opens her beak, taking the artifact in it. She spreads her wings and tries to fly. The artifact is stuck, and she is pulled back onto the pedestal. "Agh," she groans. She transforms into a larger bird and tries to take it off with it between her feet. It doesn't budge. She transforms into a giant gorilla and it still doesn't budge. Thinking, Amethyst jumps all the way back to where she started and summons her whip. She loops it around the statue and pulls at it. It still doesn't budge for some reason. Angry, she violently yanks the whip and the statue finally comes free with a _click!_ "Hah!" Amethyst catches the statue in her hands, dematerializing her weapon.

Amethyst stares at the artifact, admiring it.

"Amethyst?" Pearls calls questioningly through the hole. Her nose pokes through it. She shakes her head. What was that? She goes to the hole she came from.

"Did you get it, Amethyst?" Pearl says.

"Yep," Amethyst says, showing Pearl and Garnet the statue. "It was really hard to get."

"Alright, bubble it," Garnet says, walking back to the warp pad. "We need to check on Rose."

"Eh, I'll do it later," Amethyst says, staring at the artifact. She walks on, following behind Pearl. _It's so beautiful. _

Later, at the Temple, Rose is waiting outside for the Gems to return. She has a small baby bump on her abdomen. She's pregnant with her and Greg's child. They haven't come up with a name yet. Greg is currently at the car wash doing business and usual. She'll visit him later.

She sighs, looking out at the sea. How can something be this beautiful? Not even the homeworld was this stunning. She sighs again, admiring it all. The warp pad activates. Garnet, Amethyst, and Pearl appear, posing on it, mission completed. Pearl looks over to the beach, finding Rose sitting on the sand.

"Rose!" Pearl cries, running over to her. "You can't sit on the ground like that! What about the baby!" She grabs hold of Rose's hand to pull her up.

"It's fine, Pearl," Rose chuckles. "You can let go of my hand now. I'm able to move on my own. Did you all finish the mission?" Pearl lets go of Rose's hand. She looks at Rose as she gets up. Her movements are somewhat shaky as she stands to her feet. Pearl helps her up, putting a hand on her back for support.

"Yeah, we finished it," Amethyst says, walking towards Rose. She holds up the statue. "Look what I got!" Amethyst holds up the statue with glee.

"That's great, Amethyst," Rose says. She tilts her head, asking, "why didn't you bubble it?"

"I wanna keep it."

"For now…just don't let it touch the ground," Garnet says.

"I'm going over to Greg's carwash. I'll be back in a few hours," Rose says, walking across the beach to Beach City.

"Alright," Pearl calls out, "just be careful, Rose!" Then she ponders to herself, "Maybe I should come along to. Yeah, I'll do that. That sounds good." Pearl runs after her leader.

Later, inside the Temple, Amethyst is inside her room, staring at the artifact, fiddling with it in her hands. It's been almost half a day since the mission was over and the fact that she hasn't bubbled it yet kind of disturbs her. But there's something about the artifact that keeps her intrigued. There's something special about it. Maybe it shouldn't be bubbled. Maybe she should keep it, hide it from the Gems. Yeah, that's a good—

"Amethyst!" Pearl shouts. She's walking through the temple door into her room. "Why do you still have that thing? Bubble it!"

"No," Amethyst says, "I'm think I'm gonna keep it." She stands up, making sure the statue doesn't touch the ground.

"Why?! It's dangerous!" Pearl walks forward. Amethyst takes a step back. "Here, you should give it to me. I'll bubble it for you." She extends a hand, looking down at Amethyst with mixed feelings. Amethyst looks at Pearl angrily, knowing she's going to take the artifact from her.

"I said no!" Amethyst hollers. Pearl flinches at Amethyst's attack. She lowers her hand, having it clench into a fist, getting angry. Pearl steps forward and swipes at Amethyst for the artifact. Amethyst bites her hand. Pearl yelps out. She snatches her hand from her teammate's mouth.

"Now really Amethyst, is this how you're going to act?! Just bubble it or give it me!" Amethyst backs up again.

"Get away from me Pearl," she warns. She backs up into a large, unstable tower of junk. Pearl moves forward. Amethyst looks left and right, searching for an opening. She finds one, a puddle, that leads into the burning room. Amethyst slams her hand into the towers of junk. The shock sends the unstable tower toppling over and onto Pearl. She cries out in surprise, holding her arms up for protection.

Amethyst takes this chance to run to the puddle portal. It's not far, but Pearl is already climbing out of the rubble, livid. "Amethyst!" But she jumps into the puddle.

Amethyst falls into the burning room, landing on her butt. She interrupts a conversation between Garnet and Rose who holds a bubble with a pyramid shaped object in one of her bubbles. It looks somewhat metallic and colorful, like bismuth.

"Oh, Amethyst," Rose says, looking at the purple gem, "what are you doing here?"

"Getting away from Pearl," she replies, hiding the statue behind her back.

Rose chuckles, sending the bubble away. "Are you two fighting again?" Amethyst nods, shifting the statue behind her. "You two should really get along better. What's behind your back?"

"Nothing," she quickly says, hiding her nervous panic. "I'm going to walk around the city. I'll be back later." Amethyst turns around, moving the statue in front of her so they won't see it. But to much of her dismay, Pearl bursts in the room, covered in filth and seething with rage.

"SHE STILL HAS THAT STATUE!" Pearl screams, lunging at Amethyst. Amethyst spins out of the way. Pearl smacks her face in the wall. Amethyst looks at the statue. It's in front of her, in her hands. She looks at Garnet and Rose both, who stare back at her with shock. Pearl stomps over to Amethyst, rubbing her nose. She seizes the dangerous artifact from her possession and bubbles it. It reappears high up in the burning room, out of reach.

"What did you do that for?!" Amethyst screams, eyes showing intense anger. Her hair stands up in spikes like a scared cat.

"Amethyst, calm down," Rose says in an assuaging tone. "That artifact is evil and we had to bubble it. It's a corrupter."

"That doesn't mean you had to take it from me! I was going to bubble it eventually!" She lies, thrusting her hands behind her back.

"We know, Amethyst, but we just need to be on the safe side." Rose turns to Garnet. "We'll talk again later." Rose leaves the burning room, Pearl exiting after to go calm down in her own room. Garnet and Amethyst are left. She looks at Amethyst, fixing her shades, putting a hand on her hip.

"What," Amethyst attacks, crossing her arms.

"You are a Crystal Gem," Garnet says, "you need to put the safety of us and the humans before your curiosity." That's all she has to say, and she leaves the burning room. Amethyst is left behind, staring up at the statue.

_Amethyst._ The whisper enters her head. _Free me. _


	2. Chapter 2: When Water Turns to Wine

**Part 2: When Water Turns to Wine**

_Amethyst walks down a lowly road. It's full of trees and dirt, but not a sign of sentient life anywhere. The wind blows harshly through the air, getting hair in her eyes, trying to get her off balance. But the Gem presses on. _

_The dirt path seems to get wider and wider until she finds herself looking at a statue. It's of the artifact she was supposed to bubble. What's it doing here? _

_"__Amethyst," it says, the mouth not moving, "free me." The statue grows larger in front of Amethyst. It towers over her, scaling Amethyst to the size of an ant. The trees wither and die, the dirt road blackens. The air smells of death. "Free me." The statue bend over, staring at Amethyst with its hollow, black eyes that show no sign of life, yet it's somehow alive on its own. Alive through its own will. _

Amethyst wakes up with a sudden grunt. Rose is staring over her with a questioning look on her face. "Why do you sleep," she asks, tilting her head.

"It feels good," Amethyst says, feigning a large smile. She sits up in the sand on the beach. Greg is with her, also looking at Amethyst. "I'm gonna go…somewhere." Amethyst rolls to side, standing up. She runs to the temple. The door to the temple opens, startling Amethyst. Garnet and Pearl step out, Pearl looking quizzically at Amethyst.

"Where are you going?" Pearl asks. "We have a mission to do."

"I, uh—I'll be right back," Amethyst says, pushing past Garnet and Pearl. Quickly, she runs into her room, frantically trying to look for the puddle into the burning room. Where is it? Pearl and Garnet might come in and try to stop her if they come in and see her. All she has to do is get in and get out. That should be easy, right? So, where. Is. It.

There! Amethyst finds the fallen tower of junk. Items are falling into a puddle. Amethyst jumps for it.

As soon as she's inside, Amethyst shape-shifts into a hummingbird and darts around for each and every bubble, looking for the thing she most desires: the statue. The artifact is calling out to her for help. It's not a want, it's a need. It's calling out, wanting to be set free. Amethyst is the only who can do it. She is its protector, its guardian. Amethyst finds it near the lava pit in the center of the room. She panics at the sight of it being so close to it. She has to save it! Amethyst dives into the bubble, forcing it away from the pit and farther away into the room.

Amethyst rolls to her rump and holds the statue like a mother would who is protecting her baby.

"Oh good, it's safe," she says with relief. Amethyst runs out of the burning room before someone sees her.

(_Outside…)_

Amethyst had hid the statue in her hair tied up in a braid. She runs to the warp pad. "Alright! Let's go!" She hollers. Pearl looks at Garnet with an eyebrow raised and shrugs.

"Amethyst," Garnet says. She looks down upon the purple Gem through her shades with a frown. "We're not going anywhere."

Amethyst freezes up for a second. "Why?" She asks.

"The statue. Hand it over."

"You went to go get the statue?" Pearl narrows her eyes at Amethyst, backing away from her. "I told you it was dangerous!"

"Oh yeah, well what do you know?!" Amethyst shouts back.

"I know lots of things! More things than you, you-you—"

"Pearl," Garnet says, stopping Pearl before she says something she shouldn't. "Amethyst, give me the statue." Garnet holds out her hand.

"No!" Amethyst slaps Garnet's hand away. She stares up, brow furrowed with anger.

"Amethyst, don't do this." Amethyst takes in a deep breath and runs away. Rose steps in front of her before she can get anywhere.

"Amethyst," Rose says, bending over to her level, "I know you this statue means a lot to you and I know you want to keep it, but please, reconsider what this means for the team. I care for you Amethyst, deeply so, and I don't want to see you get hurt. So many of us have passed because of this statue alone, and seeing you like this makes me so very sad. So Amethyst, please give me the statue."

Amethyst backs away. If anyone who could understand, it could have been Rose. But now she can't trust anyone. Not Garnet, not Pearl, not Rose, not anybody. "STAY AWAY FROM ME!" Amethyst screams in anger. Then she screams in agony.

"Amethyst?" Rose erects herself, and back up, holding her stomach. The purple Gem shoots a look through her obsidian black eyes. Amethyst's hair surrounds her. She grows a pair of pointed ears on either sides of her head, whiskers from her mouth and a three tails in the rear. A large tuff of purple hair covers and hides her gem. The blackness in her eyes recedes and they shift to a more purple hue. Rose gasps in shock with a tear falling from her eye, stunned from Amethyst's transformation. "Amethyst…"

Amethyst roars. Garnet smashes her corrupted friend in the face with a powerful shit with her gauntlet, away from Rose because of the baby. "Amethyst, you idiot. You should have given me the statue."

"Amethyst, what have you done!" Pearl cries, summoning her spear. "Rose! You have to stay back!" Amethyst rolls to her feet and hisses, hairs standing up on her back. She charges towards the Gems. She jumps in the air. She spin-dashes to the gems. Garnet and Pearl evade Amethyst, but it seems they weren't her targets anyway. Her directive is towards Rose.

"Amethyst," Rose says, her gem glowing, "I don't want to fight you." Rose clutches her shield. Amethyst collides into Rose's shield. "I know how you feel, Amethyst! I know your pain! You thought you could trust me. You thought that I would understand your keeping of the statue and when I said you couldn't have it, that must have hurt you. I am sorry Amethyst!" Rose pushes Amethyst away into the cliffside. Garnet hammer arms the corrupted gem deeper inside the cliff. Pearl finishes her off by throwing her spear into Amethyst's stomach. It impales her.

Amethyst lets out a small cry and she explodes into an enormous cloud of white vapor. Her gem falls onto the sand, the statue falling right next to it. Garnet bubbles the statue and sends it away. Instead of bubbling it, Pearl picks up Amethyst's gem. "You were the only good thing that came out of that mess…" She clenches the gem in her fist and she and Garnet walk over to Rose. She's crying.

"Rose, she's here," Garnet says. Pearl shows Amethyst's gem to her.

"We have to find a way to save them all," Rose sobs, wiping away her tears.

**_(12 Years Later…)_**

"So this is Amethyst?" Steven asks, holding the Rose Quartz bubble encasing the purple gemstone.

"Yes, she was a Crystal Gem like us," Garnet says.

"But she became corrupted by that statue floating near the ceiling," Pearl says, pointing to one of her bubbles. "Although she was a wild, free-spirited Gem, she was still one of us. Your mother, Rose, was her everything. But she was corrupted by the statue and lost herself. Your mother tried her best to save her but it didn't work. She tried to save all these Gems here, but she failed. But since you have Rose's gem, maybe you have the potential to save them all."

"Really?!" Steven exclaims with starry-eyed excitement.

"Of course, but first you have to learn to control your powers."

"Oh."

"Come on, we have a mission to do." The Gems leave the burning room with Pearl releasing Amethyst to float to the ceiling where she'll stay until they find a way to save her.

**THE END**

_(Sorry about before. I clicked the wrong file.)_


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